Men's Basketball

Men's Basketball Falls To Eastern Connecticut State, 83-70

NORTH DARTMOUTH, MA-The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth men's basketball team lost to visiting Eastern Connecticut State, 83-70, in the second game of a Little East Conference doubleheader at the Tripp Athletic Center Tuesday evening.

Tied 5-5 with 17:48 to play in the first half, the Corsairs rattled off an 11-6 run over five minutes, taking a 16-11 lead, the largest lead the Corsairs would have during the contest. The Warriors took control of the game, executing a 24-4 run over the next six minutes of play behind eight points from senior guard Jamie Kohn (Columbia, CT/Coventry HS), giving ECSU a 35-20 lead that they never gave up. The Corsairs outscored the Warriors 16-15 down the stretch, closing the gap to 45-34 going into halftime.

Eastern Connecticut opened the second half with an 18-7 surge, and a jumper from senior guard Chae Philips (West Haven, CT/West Haven HS) at the 11:58 mark gave the Warriors their largest lead of the game, a 62-40 advantage. The Warriors maintained a double-digit lead throughout the second half, and the closest the Corsairs came was with 34 seconds to play, down 81-70 after a pair of free throws from senior center Lance Greene (Dorchester, MA/Charlestown HS/UMass Lowell). Warriors sophomore guard Brian Salzillo (North Haven, CT/North Haven HS) added two free throws in the final thirty seconds, as the Warriors secured the 83-70 victory.

"They came out with more energy than us," said UMass Dartmouth Assistant Coach Ed Rodrigues. " They out-hustled us and it showed. We gave up too many open perimeter shots, we gave up too many back door cuts. We can't give teams open looks like that. Right now we are too inconsistent. We have to become more consistent not only in games but practice as well."

The Corsairs shot 44% (24-of-54) from the field, including 28.6 % (6-of-21) from three-point range and 76.2% (16-of-21) from the foul line. The Warriors were 56.3% (27-of-48) from the floor, connecting on 42.1% (8-of-19) of three-point attempts and 75% (21-of-28) from the free throw line. Eastern Connecticut out rebounded UMD 31-25 during the game.

The Corsairs dropped to 7-7 and 1-3 in the Little East Conference with the loss, while the Warriors improved to 10-1 and 4-0 in the LEC with the victory. UMass Dartmouth will return to action when they visit Southern Maine in the second game of a Little East Conference doubleheader Saturday. Eastern Connecticut will host Maine-Presque Isle Thursday evening.